Mining for Nuggets

Have you ever dreamed of mining gold, silver, or bronze? You’ll soon be scooping up precious nuggets with this Silly Putty® game!

1.

Ready to play a game that you make with Silly Putty? In this game, you try to squish your Metallic Silly Putty pieces (nuggets) while preventing your opponent from mining any nuggets. Just squish the gold, silver, or bronze nuggets on the bottom of your Silly Putty egg. Here’s one way to make an exciting game. You can think up your own rules, too.

2.

Design your game board. On foam core or cardboard, design your game board using Crayola Erasable Colored Pencils. Include the start (perhaps an entrance to a mineshaft). Make the game path, which could be a track for mine carts that go deep into the mine. You’ll probably want at least 40 spaces along the path through your mine. Add trick sections such as loops, pools of water, or avalanches (dead ends). Remember, you can easily erase the colored pencils if you change your mind.

3.

Decorate your game board with Crayola Washable Markers. Include details to make the game more interesting. You could write consequences or rewards on game spaces, such as <EM>Tunnel caves in, lose one turn</EM> or <EM>Strike ore vein, move ahead to next nugget</EM>.

4.

Create a spinner. With Crayola Scissors, cut out a pointer for the game spinner from a paper plate. Color it with markers. Divide up the back of another paper plate into pie shapes. Write single-digit numerals in each space. Ask an adult to poke a hole in

5.

Place your nuggets. Two or three players may play. One player each chooses silver, gold, or bronze Silly Putty. Make 20 nuggets with your chosen color. Spin to see who places the first nugget on the board. Alternate turns until you have placed all nuggets on spaces on the board.

6.

Dig the mines! Spin to see who goes first. Use half of the Silly Putty egg as a game piece (mining cart). Move along the path the number of spaces shown on your spinner.

7.

If you land on a space with your own nugget, put the nugget in your cart. Your turn ends.

8.

If you land on a space with an opponent’s nugget, squash the nugget under your cart (this prevents your opponents from gathering it into their carts). Your turn ends.

9.

Continue playing until one player returns to Start. The cart with the most nuggets inside wins the game.